Re-run of the old school KC Hilites 46 / LE / 772
Answered
Hey KC. I'd love to see a small batch (50) of the old school KC Hilites 46 (with Amber lenses) produced. There's a small but stable group of people who look out for these but can never find them.
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I would buy a set or two if these came back at a reasonable price, not the $250+ that they are on ebay.
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Please make a run of these. Would love to have a set
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I'd love to see these lights back in production - amber and clear!
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It's been over a year since I first posted this. It was great to get feedback from KC, as a company, soon after the first post. This is a sign of good customer service. And the response suggested that there could be backing from KC.
Since then we've had no responses from KC.
What would be good is for KC to give us some direction in regards to quantities needed. I'm sure KC is looking for sustainable products that can be run and sold through different outlets. Short of that it sounds like KC would be willing to do a limited run.
What would it take to get a limited run? What would it take to get a set at $100? A run qty of 100, 200, 300?
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Bryan and team,
First thank you so much for the huge support recently. We thought we lost you guys. We still have some of the reflector tooling but there are other housing and plastic cover tools that are damaged and we'd have to assess whether we could repair to get a run out.
With the overwhelming support, I will need a few weeks to assess the viability of the tools and at what volume/price we could resurrect this. We will do our best and see if it's a possibility. At the very least we could get the information and then consult the forum here.
Will post some status here again soon!
Alan Wang
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Love it! Thanks, Alan!
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I'd like to extend my thanks as well Alan! Its rare to find a company so dedicated to hearing and helping its customers, I hope things work out!
Looking forward to updates!0 -
Count me in as a definite purchase! Amber set is much preferred of the HiLite 46 / LE series! Lots of us have been after these for years and the remaining ones left are going fast!
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K/C, if a rerun was made i'd be a definite buyer! I already have 4 K/C Apollo series on my YJ and they work great and these would be perfect for the rear back up lights. Thanks!
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Definitely keep it locked in on this post. Thanks Alan and KC for listening and looking into a rerun! I will gladly be purchasing a set or two as well.
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I'd love to see this as well. Its tough to find them for a decent price. Please keep this up!
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Team,
The majority of the tools for this product were destroyed 2 years ago :(. Between 1991 and 2005 we ran 571,679 pieces so the tooling for both the reflector and plastic hinged cover was already so deteriorated that we decided to trash them.
At this point, we would have to retool most of the light to resurrect it. This has been and will be on our list of things to review to see if we can bring it back at some point but currently it would be quite costly if we retooled just for a limited run of 500 pairs.
I assume most of the support would want this light to be a halogen version and as close to the original as possible vs. an LED version right?
I felt the bottom of my stomach sink when our team advised of the situation because I know how many of our customers would feel. What are your thoughts?
Thanks
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Halogen version please!
It's a real bummer reading that. I'm still holding onto hope that you guys are able to figure out how to remake these lights. I don't think you guys would have any trouble selling these.
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Hello Alan,
Thank you for the update! I think the majority of people would prefer the Halogen version (including me). However if you can manage the fit a led version in the same base you can sell both and other people will buy them to if the price is right. Modern technology in an affordable Old School base could sell well I think.
Best regards,
Bastiaan
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If the lens is the same then I don't think it should matter if it's Halogen or LED.
It would be nice to have a kickstarter to show how many pre-orders there would be to help decide whether to bring them back into production.
I'm sure if it was a limited run of even 1000 there would be more orders vs knowing they will be produced for a few years.Personally, If I know it's going to stay in production for a few years then I will only buy 2 sets, but if it's a limited run then 3-4.
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^ i was thinking kickstarter as well!
That would definitely get the word out to everyone, especially those of us who want to do a restoration!
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Howdy Alan!
Thanks for these quick updates, I know you've probably got plenty going on at the office so all this support from you is greatly appreciated!
Though I can't speak for everyone, I can assume halogen would be preferred. However, an LED version that utilizes the classic housing and classic interchangeable lens (I believe there was a clear and a amber version) would be well received too as a modern run to tribute the classic light. Something to consider!
As those before me mentioned, a kickstarter or other crowdfunding for this might be viable. I've funded some successful projects that pulled in over 1.5 million in funding for 60$ items. I'm sure if KC included several reward tiers adding shirts, stickers, other promotional items, a single pair of lights, two pairs of lights, both lens options, and even a tour of the facility respectively it could garner a good following.
I'd promote any effort on both my club's facebook pages, which have a reach of 15K combined, as well as other social media outlets. The groups and forums are buzzing about this potential revival of the old light series, this thread here represents only a small portion of all those excited by this!
Best of luck, I'm on the edge of my seat about this!3 -
I'm down as well on the Kickstarter idea. It would allow you the money for the equipment and let you see really how much or the community is willing to buy. I know I would be buying a set. Thanks keep it up!
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Hi Alan,
Thank you first off for your product support and doing research into this topic.
I would like to address a few possible solutions to the unfortunate tooling loss.
1. Would it be possible to run these without the cover?
- I believe a large portion of the interest in these for wranglers and explorers are for resurgence of interest in the Jurassic Park franchise, of which both vehicles had these covers removed.
- Has 3d printing been considered for the covers? I would happily donate a pair of my covers for scans and to create a template for them or to create new molds.
2. Is there a source of reflectors you can purchase to use for these to limit the cost of retooling this component?
3. A big problem with the plastic covers and the halogen bulbs has been if the lights were turned on while the covers were down, they would create excess heat and warp the lenses.
- Is there a possibility to run new amber and clear lenses to replace these warped or cracked ones? (I can provided examples of my damaged ones)
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I would say an LED version would be acceptable as long as it looks like the originals and not like a board of LEDs. I have had some great success with LED light bulbs being brighter than stock bulbs without looking any different.
The problem with the halogen bulb is the brightness. If these are mounted on the back of a Jeep, say for the purpose of making a Jurassic Park replica vehicle, they are high and blinding. Going with a non-halogen option is a great idea.
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Team,
I just wanted to follow up here and say how blown away we are from the overwhelming support of the brand and product in discussion. At this time there is not a viable solution as the cost to create tooling would not be possible even with the current amount of sets proposed. We will research guidelines on the kickstarter or other similar platforms to see if we could raise the money.
The other route is for us to see if some existing tooling still exists that is a similarly sized light. That research is underway but may not yield a viable alternative, but we will try!
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Alan,
Thanks for the continuing updates. Every road has speed bumps, I'm sure there will be plenty in the way of this project but I feel comfortable saying that if that road can be traversed that everyone here and the silent majority will be ready to partake in the reward!
If similar tooling does exist, that would be an interesting route to take to see what modifications would be necessary to the design, or the tool, to achieve the end goal.
I've seen successful, established companies run kickstarters for new variants of existing products so i imagine that a kickstarter would be a very successful route if everything checks out on your end with the rules. I'd definitely forward the campaign to every social media outlet related to off road, vehicle enthusiasts, and even jurassic park that I have close connections with to maximize exposure.
Keep us all posted,
Thanks Again!2 -
Alan,
Thank you very much for your continued responses and looking into all possibilities to return this light!
Looking forward to the next update to see where this goes!
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Hello all,
I would like to provide some input on some tiny little improvements for the lights designs. I will post photos of examples of what could be improved if this run of KC Hilites 46 series does get the go ahead. Now the improvements aren't anything major that will alter the look of the lights. They will keep their look screen accurate for the JPmotorpool builders such as myself. Also Id be more for the LED versions, since I like to save energy. But Alan if your team can do both, I would just make sure that the 55w halogen and the LED bulb give off the same (or close to) the same amount of lumens. Also I do realize that plastics in general weaken and break due to exposure to the Suns UV rays, high heat, low temperatures and over all due to time and the elements. But heres what I would ask to be improved for these "V2.0" Lights.
Most of the examples below are due to time and being kept in storage for long. But hope these can be addressed?
Also I have started 3d modeling my own pair of KC 46 series lights in Sketchup. Now I know that their is a whole lot of science and math that goes into making the reflector housing and the lens in order to project the light correctly but Id just thought I'd share. These aren't 100% accurate but they are darn close since I measured one of my one lights. Still working on it but it could be a place to start?
Thank you,Nathan
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I'd like to chime in for support of making the KC 46/LE series as I'm trying to build a Jurassic Park Explorer and I understand those are the roof lights, so I'd want 3 of them. It would be great if you could produce them!
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@Nathan, are you willing to share the Sketchup files when you're done? Might be useful in the event that KC doesn't make these lights.
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@John-Mark Palacios I'd be more than happy to if KC Hilites saw my post and ask for my current models for them to use as a base (Starting place) for the re-run. I have also modeled a rough Amber Lens in addition to the Clear Lens model. Though the flip up cover is a pain currently, trying to design it so that the cover flips without hitting the light housing. I have the screws and the bolts to secure the light together to work on. But over all this project was a quick one so far.
The left housing is the original design for those who want Screen Accurate lens and or just want an original KC 46 light for the run. The Right is my take on the housing and trying to modernize it with adding more Heat Sink Fins on the Top, Bottom and an additional set on each side. 
This is where I'm at now, I've redone the back of the light housing so now its got the same shape and geometry just like the originals.
To the Left is my 1.0Version of the housing. To the right is the more current and accurate housing. Thank you!
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i would just like to offer my support for these being remade as I have a jp jeep and an explorer I restore quite a few replica tv and movie cars and these were used on quite a few of them and would be looking for a at least a dozen sets im in the uk so these are near impossible to find
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